Have you checked out VueScan? Works with an amazing range of scanners.

Others, because it still works and they have no reason to waste money on a new machine. I know at least two such people. Me? I have WinXP Pro in a Xen DomU, just in case I need something windowsy. It's always on, and I connect to it using RDP over an SSH tunnel. Sure, I rarely use it, but it's there should I need it and it's a better solution than having a XP VM on each of my Linux machines.

At work I have a Win7 VM in VirtualBox, it is horribly, horribly slow. The XP VM on the same VirtualBox host, is snappy and quick.

XP might be dead, but it's makes a rather well preserved zombie.

You can have all the laws of physics explain how things move etc, but how will they ever explain this consciousness?

May I introduce you to the concept of "argument from ignorance". It might be well that it can be perfectly explained by natural laws, just you and me are not (yet) able to.

I can't even prove beyond all doubt that others experience this phenomenon and are conscious. And I can't prove my consciousness to others. I just have to take it by faith that these "imaginary friends" called "you" and "I" exist.

If you go the solipsism route, nothing is certain any more. Even those physical laws you say explain how things move (etc), become totally uncertain in a solipsistic worldview. After all, it could all be just your mind and nothing truly exists.

Let's ignore how the IT dept should have some kind of network traffic scans to see this stuff, how the heck does a non-admin do something like this? And I'm not attributing it to malice, I'm sure this guy "meant well" and in the process managed to screw everything up. Otherwise, I'm going with "scapegoats" for 1000, Alex.

so we put you in a VR rollercoaster while you were on a real rollercoaster so you can coast while you coast!

I suggested that. Cumbersome when working on big machines, apparently.

I'm a Linux person. Doesn't mean I don't keep myself informed about Mac matters and Windows matters. Sure, I openly tell people I will not support them if they are on Windows *any* version. Get OS X or Linux and I'll help you. Otherwise find someone else.

Well, the first thing any serious IT person does after a service pack is slipstream it. So, really, you've only got to blame yourself on this one.

It was IE8. You start off with IE6, even after slipstreaming. I think. I didn't bother testing. I could try another day. I already killed the VM.

PuTTY has an installer. Has had it for ages.

Some people enjoy pain and suffering too.

Yup, you don't understand mature software. That's ok, most people in tech don't. As for the media? Slipstream the latest SP into your ISO and you're done. I have installed XP previously in a Xen DomU and itt' drop dead easy. 7 is a "just ok" replacement and only by virtue of Vista being so bad.